Publications

January 1988 (Revised January 1997)
Case

Digital Equipment Corp.: The Endpoint Model (A)

By: David A. Garvin

Describes a comprehensive manufacturing strategy designed to reduce substantially the cycle time of orders (i.e. the time between the placement of an order by a customer and its delivery to the customer). To launch the strategy Digital has adopted manufacturing... View Details

Keywords: Business Plan; Information; Time Management; Production; Strategic Planning; Strategy; Manufacturing Industry

March 2020 (Revised January 2023)
Case

Nadine Vogel: Transforming the Marketplace, Workplace, and Workforce for People with Disabilities

By: Lakshmi Ramarajan, Hannah Riley-Bowles and Michael Norris

In 2019, Nadine Vogel, founder and CEO of Springboard Consulting, a firm that worked with Fortune 500 companies on issues related to disability and their workforce, faced the decision of the best path forward to grow her small company. Should she build more and better... View Details

Keywords: Diversity; Entrepreneurship; Personal Development and Career; Decision Choices and Conditions; Growth and Development Strategy; Product Development; Market Entry and Exit; Consulting Industry; United States; Florida; New York (state, US)

July 2008 (Revised September 2009)
Case

ASUSTeK Computer Inc. Eee PC (A)

By: Willy C. Shih, Chintay Shih, Hung-Chang Chiu, Yi-Ching Hsieh and Ho Howard Yu

ASUSTek Computer was the world's largest manufacture of PC motherboards, yet when it tried to launch its new sub-notebook Eee PC, the organization faced challenges in doing things outside of its established processes. Though many of the team members had worked together... View Details

Keywords: Change Management; Disruptive Innovation; Product Launch; Groups and Teams; Information Infrastructure; Mobile and Wireless Technology; Technology Industry

01 Jun 2015
News

Ink

professor Michael A. Cusumano identify the common magic mojo management practices of a trio who were individually very different people but who shared a similar drive. “All three were enormously ambitious and dreamed big dreams—not so... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne; Apple; Microsoft; Computer and Electronic Product Manufacturing; Computer and Electronic Product Manufacturing; Computer and Electronic Product Manufacturing; Computer and Electronic Product Manufacturing

01 Mar 2007
News

Letters to the Editor

very substantial product differentiation from their competition or, in the case of the “Truth” anti-tobacco campaign, no competition — just a villain that was an easy target. I don’t know if the agency pursued such clients as a conscious... View Details

December 2005 (Revised November 2006)
Case

Corning, 2002

By: Malcolm P. Baker and James Quinn

Corning, with large investments in fiber optic technology, was hit particularly hard by the collapse of the telecommunications industry in 2001. With over $4 billion in debt, the firm's survival appears to rest on raising additional equity capital. The protagonist is... View Details

Keywords: Financial Strategy; Financial Condition; Financial Instruments; Valuation; Capital; Public Equity; Stock Shares; Business or Company Management; Strategy; Industrial Products Industry; Industrial Products Industry

19 Sep 2018
Sharpening Your Skills

Say Again? Uncommon Advice for Common Business Problems

when their employees are naturally proactive. When a Competitor Abandons the Market, Should You Advance or Retreat? Companies pay close attention when a competitor drops out of the market. Too often, though, they come to the wrong conclusion. Hiding From View Details

Keywords: by Sean Silverthorne

November 1998 (Revised December 1998)
Case

Asea Brown Boveri (Condensed)

By: Robert L. Simons

The merger of Asea AB and BBC Brown Boveri required a restructuring of operations and a change in organizational cultures. Competitive success also necessitated the benefits of scale while remaining "local" for political and customer-responsiveness reasons. The case... View Details

Keywords: Change Management; Mergers and Acquisitions; Restructuring; Cost vs Benefits; Competitive Strategy; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Growth and Development; Performance Effectiveness; Consumer Products Industry

10 Aug 2022
News

Skydeck Live: Stage Not Age

And then, develop portfolio tools and management towards that. And that was a real groundbreaker in the way they offered their services. And then, they went even further. They hired a financial... View Details

Career Coach

Carrie Goodrich

Carrie pivoted from Sales and Trading to Strategy and Operations at DoorDash and, more recently, a Product Management Internship at Amazon. Given this, Carrie can help students navigate industry transitions... View Details

03 Aug 2015
Research & Ideas

Why Fierce Competitors Apple and Amazon Became ’Frenemies’ Over eReaders

Technology and Operations Management unit at Harvard Business School. And why would Apple ever allow a Kindle app in its App Store in the first place? "We all know historically Apple often says no to apps that directly compete with... View Details

Keywords: by Michael Blanding; Information; Publishing; Technology

June 1992 (Revised March 1993)
Case

Fleetwood Enterprises, Inc. 1990

By: Timothy A. Luehrman

The CFO of Fleetwood Enterprises is considering whether to recommend a large share repurchase to the board of directors. Fleetwood's core businesses, manufactured housing and recreational vehicles, are very sensitive to business cycles and oil prices. Following Iraq's... View Details

Keywords: Business Cycles; Capital Structure; Stock Shares; Price; Crisis Management; Production; Manufacturing Industry; Iraq; Kuwait